This invention relates to closely spaced attachments, and, more particularly, to their use and manufacture.
Attachments are widely used in the coupling of objects. In many cases the coupling is of a price tag to a garment or some other article of merchandise.
One type of attachment and dispensing gun found to be particularly suitable and versatile is as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,103,666, issued Sept. 16, 1963. Individual ones of the attachments are positioned on a common mounting element to form "a clip", and are spaced from one another according to the interval required for proper operation of the dispensing gun.
Each individual attachment in the '666 patent is formed by a dispensing member, or cross bar, at the base of an elongated filament-like connector which extends to a head or paddle. Each dispensing member, or cross bar, is joined to a common mounting element of the clip.
In the dispensing of individual attachments, the clip formed by the mounting element and the attachments is inserted into the dispenser, and the cross bar of the first attachment is advanced to a position for being dispensed through a slotted hollow needle by a plunger.
The slot in the needle permits the elongated filamentary connector to be expelled at the same time as the cross bar. If the needle has been used to penetrate, for example, a price marking tag and an article of merchandise, expulsion of the attachment causes the cross bar to be released from the needle on the reverse side of the article. When the needle is subsequently withdrawn from the article the connector of the attachment extends from the cross bar through the front side of the article and supports the price marking tag against the head of the attachment. The attachments of the '666 patent can be significantly improved by stretching their connectors as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,444,597 which issued May 28, 1969. Such attachments can be manufactured in accordance with U.S. Pat. No. 3,380,122 which issued Apr. 30, 1968.
In practice, it has been necessary to have a minimum separation between individual fasteners attached to the common mounting element of the clip. While it would be desirable to pack the fasteners more closely than in the '666 patent, physical limitations encountered in molding have prevented the attainment of tightly packed clips.
Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to decrease spacing of individual attachments of clips of attachments commonly used in the coupling of objects. A related object is to decrease the spacing between attachments over and above that achieved in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,103,666, 3,380,122 and 3,444,597.
If an attempt is made to decrease the spacing of attachments by decreasing the mold distances between individual attachments, there is a physical limitation caused by the need to maintain a finite wall thickness between adjoining attachments. This problem is particularly acute at the paddle regions of the attachment, since the paddles involve comparatively large adjoining surfaces.
When an attempt is made to decrease wall thickness, compensation is necessary either by seeking to produce molds of more durable materials, or by operating the molds under less rigorous conditions. Since users of attachments prefer thin and flexible connectors, the molds must be operated with comparatively narrow orifices under high pressure. When such molds are fabricated with comparatively thin walls, either the injection pressures must be reduced or the wall strenghtened in some other fashion in order to prevent internal damage to the mold.
Accordingly, it is another object of the invention to decrease the spacing between adjoining attachments of a clip without requiring unduly thin wall sections in the molds used to form the attachments. A related object is to decrease spacing between adjoining paddle members of a clip of attachments without the need for excessively thin wall thicknesses in the associated molds.
A further object of the invention is to enhance the mold life of molds used to produce clips of closely spaced attachments. A related object is to permit the molding of closely spaced attachments without impairment of the operating parameters used in conventional molding practice.
Because of the widespread use and general acceptance of standard fasteners of the type shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,103,666 and the dispenser disclosed in that patent, an extensive line of modernized dispensing devices has been developed that are based on the original dispenser of that patent. These devices are all designed to be used with clips that have a standard spacing of attachments.
It is yet another object of the invention to decrease the spacing of attachments while simultaneously permitting such attachments to be used with standard dispensers that are now in widespread use.